That time I played golf with the future president

AUGUSTA, Georgia â€” I played golf with Donald Trump in November 2002 when he was just a billionaire developer who loved golf .

Rounding out our pro-am foursome at Trump International in West Palm Beach, Florida, were Annika Sorenstam and Jim Palmer, the former Baltimore Orioles pitcher. At the time, Sorenstam was the best in the world, and Trump had made sure she was in his group.

Me? I was just along for the ride.

On the last hole, Sorenstam hit her tee shot about 10 yards past mine, and that was all the future president, known for trash talk on the links, needed.

“Did you see how far she hit it past you? And you hit that one good!” he said mockingly.

“Yes, well, she is No. 1 in the world,” I replied.

“Yeah, but you’re a big, strong guy and she’s 20 yards past you!”

The next day I was watching Sorenstam in the first round and when she missed a putt, I realized I was standing next to Trump.

“I hope we didn’t ruin her yesterday,” I said.

He looked over, saw me and said, “Hey there! Man, I cannot believe how far she hit it past you on the 18th yesterday.” That’s when I knew he hadn’t let it go.

Days later, when I was to interview him for a story on golf course development, he even wanted me to tell his employee who brought me to our meeting.